Dunn’s 19 leads Bears in Arkansas

Thursday

LaceDarius Dunn did his part, leading Baylor with 19 points including four 3-pointers.

But down around the basket is where the Bears really pulled off a 70-47 victory over Arkansas last night in North Little Rock, Ark.

“They have great length, a tremendous shot blocker on the back side and experienced guards,” Arkansas Coach John Pelfrey said.

The Bears (10-1) blocked 12 shots, limited Arkansas to 31 percent shooting, outrebounded the Razorbacks 42-36 and outscored them in the paint 34-16. Ekpe Udoh, a 6-foot-10 junior, had eight blocks and 15 rebounds to lead the effort. He also had eight points.

Arkansas (7-6) was led by freshman Marshawn Powell with 14 points.

Top 25

(9) North Carolina 87, Albany 70: In Chapel Hill, N.C., Ed Davis had 18 points and Deon Thompson added 15 points for the Tar Heels (11-3), who, despite being short-handed, built a double-digit lead midway through the first half and coasted the rest of the way for its third straight win since losing to No. 2 Texas.

The Tar Heels played without fifth-year senior Marcus Ginyard and sophomore Justin Watts. Watts injured his right ankle during Monday’s win against Rutgers, while Ginyard has missed two straight since spraining his right ankle in practice.

Will Harris scored 22 points to lead the Great Danes (4-10), who ended an eight-game road trip with just one victory.

Cincinnati 71, (10) Connecticut 69: In Cincinnati, freshman Lance Stephenson was fouled with less than a second left and made both free throws to rally Cincinnati in a wild Big East opener for both teams.

Cincinnati (9-3) had lost all five previous games against UConn (9-3). The Bearcats led by 11 points before the Huskies made a late run, tying it on Kemba Walker’s 3-pointer with 9.4 seconds to go.

Stephenson dribbled into the lane and was fouled by Gavin Edwards as the buzzer sounded. After a review, the officials put seventh-tenths of a second on the clock, Stephenson went to the line and made both, finishing with 21 points.

(11) Michigan St. 87, Texas-Arlington 68: In East Lansing, Mich., Durrell Summers and Draymond Green combined for 39 points to lead Michigan State.

Summers had 20 points, 13 in the first half, for the Spartans (10-3), while Green added 19 in a balanced attack in their final nonconference game.

Virginia 72, (24) UAB 63: In Charlottesville, Va., Sylven Landesberg scored 19 points and had two free throws and two key assists in the final 2:36 as Virginia (7-4) ended a 10-game winning streak for UAB (11-2).

Illinois 89, (25) Northwestern 83 (OT): In Champaign, Ill., Mike Tisdale had a career-high 31 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Illinois spoiled Northwestern’s return to the rankings after 40 years in the Big Ten opener for both teams.